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FOCUS!

I loved reading Jeanne Reynolds’ Every Woman blog post in August called, “Going retro: In praise of the pencil”. I thought I was the only person left on the planet still using a paper calendar and pencil. With a new app for this, and a new app for that, who keeps up with life the old-fashioned way? I at least know of two people! I love my iPhone, iWatch, and iPad, but not to keep up with various appointments and routine daily life.

I recently left from work in a rush. I drove through that wonderful rush hour traffic on I-20 heading toward Lexington. I had a hair appointment at Salon on Main. Of course, that also entailed the blissful and always uneventful traffic flow into the town of Lexington. I actually made my 5:30 appointment on time. I was waiting for Brittany to call me back to her magical salon chair. At 5:31, she entered the waiting area with a warm smile on her face. She looked at her watch and said, “I’m sorry I’m late”. I laughed knowing she was being facetious. I was the one that was late…by an ENTIRE WEEK! I somehow got distracted and my original appointment was lost somewhere in my brain fog. I looked at my calendar that particular morning, but by the afternoon, I was mentally done.

Battling daily chronic pain is exhausting. Although my pain is mostly now under control, clearing the brain fog has been a bear. Before my “mysterious illness” began, focusing on many tasks was easy. Now, it’s a struggle to even focus on one! I cannot go off on a tangent trying to tackle a second task when the first one is not yet complete.

Driving through Texas in 2015, our oldest granddaughter Abby and my husband (Pop) had a deal where she would listen to her music for an hour, and Pop would listen to his music for an hour. During Pop’s radio time, he would educate Abby on the nuances between today’s music and the music of his generation.

Abby devised a way to “distract” us so she could change the station to suit her. She excitedly pointed to the vastness of Texas and said, “SQUIRREL”! We went along with her shenanigans for awhile and looked out of the car window for that elusive rodent. After a couple hundred miles, I believe 70’s music started growing on her. Once we made it through Dallas, she stopped changing the station. By the way, we never saw a squirrel in Texas but once we got to the Grand Canyon in Arizona, what do you know? A little squirrel scurried past Abby’s feet and hung out under the fence behind her.

Some may reference being constantly distracted as “chasing rabbits”. Me? I say “SQUIRREL” like Abby. Some days I can make fun of myself and laugh about it. Other days, it is quite bothersome.I continue finding new ways to stay focused. How do you do it? I definitely need help in this area!